Hey guys, Been growing a couple of small autoflowers (Automatic AK-49), they have been doing well but due to unpredictable weather that haven't grown that big (1.2 feet). Anyway, any ideas how long left? They are about 65 days old (9 weeks) and have been getting super frosty and quite a lot of the pistilles are now shriveling and turning brown. Thanks for any suggestions UPDATE (07/8): - A lot more of the pistils are turning amber/brown and shriveling. I believe the buds are continuing to swell, although still no sign yet of any amber trichomes... Is this a good sign? - Here are both my plants, same strain, grown under the same conditions/pot size. The left one is a few weeks behind the right one as I stunted it's growth slightly earlier on. UPDATE (08/8): - Trying to get a closer shot of the buds. - This is the other plant that is a week or so behind but is growing nicely. UPDATE (10/8): - This is the one that is still a few weeks behind the other - Close up bud shots
flush her now, it's week 9, harvest in 2 weeks after flushing... Don't take my word though .. wait for someone more advanced to back it up
You want to start flushing when the trichromes start turning from a milky white to amber color. Get a 40x currency microscope. They are about 10 bucks and are very helpful for seeing the amber color. Some people use different ratios, like 50% amber. Other might tell you to pick them as soon as they are starting to turn.
dont listen to that first guy. she's barely starting to fill out. at least 3 and a half more weeks if not 4 and a half more weeks until your ready to harvest
So I looked it up the more clear trichromes you have the more of an uplifting high your bud will be. The more amber you have turns it more stoney. I would go with a 50/50 white/amber ratio and then experiment what you like from there.
Ok thanks for the info bud. I think I read somewhere that on some autoflowers, the trics don't turn amber? But how would that be possible? Haha Yeah I was thinking that man, but I am growing outside, the amount of light hours has decreased quite a bit and a lot of the pistils are turning amber and shriveling. Can I let the plant continue to mature without effecting it too much? Thanks.
Ahh I see- it can continue to mature; depends. Can you post another picture closer up shot? And how much daylight right now where you live? + any shade?
Ahh I see- it can continue to mature; depends. Can you post another picture closer up shot? And how much daylight right now where you live? + any shade? If you see single leaf sets with odd speckling pattern then harvest like tomorrow; that means its flowering hormones are receding and veg is starting again very slowly. First few leaf sets back into veg are singles with little thc dots
Yeah it's really hard to get a close up shot my phone camera doesn't want to focus :L On a nice, clear sunny day they realistically get about 14 - 15 hours of light a day. I try my best to move them into the sun when they move into the shade. Where would I find these single leaf sets? You're not referring to the speckling pattern on some of the main fan leaves are you? I will have a look and see haha thanks!
Autos grow independent of light cycle. I doubt that they would revert back to vegetative growth. They grow. They die. That's why you can't clone them successfully. As suggested by Smokey', get yourself a magnifying glass. You want the majority of the pistils to have changed color, shriveled, AND receded back into the calyx (not all the way, but noticeably). I personally like my trichomes cloudy with just a few colored amber. I can't speak for auto's because I don't grow them, but I have experienced a few photo dependent strains that did not turn amber even when left to grow way past their due date. So using this as an indication of when to harvest might not be 100% accurate.
When I made my earlier post I was unaware that they were auto's (dont know how i missed reading it) ; but the speckling im talking about is not fan leaf speckling, hard to explain so i'll just link you to a few pictures of revegging growth. http://static.grscty.com/uploads/monthly_04_2013/post-389481-1368847122958.jpg http://www.weedguru.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26659
Ahh I see at the top of the plant, right haha... Luckily don't have any of those just yet I don't think.
Ahh ok yeah I was thinking about that. Yeah I do have a 40x magnifier and the trichomes still mainly seem to appear cloudy with a few clears. Does that mean I should wait it out until I have a few amber one's? Thanks.
Wait for all cloudy for sure. Remember what I said previously. Your trichomes MAY not turn amber. And I have read that auto's (some/all?) don't. But letting your plants go another 2 weeks past cloudy won't affect them negatively. If they're gonna turn amber, they'll show within two weeks. That's based on whether or not you're looking for that "stoney, couch lock" high. To me, amber trichomes are just an indication of degraded THC (into CBN). This is what causes couch lock. It's actually the ratio of active THC compared to CBN (more couch lock, higher ratio of CBN). I prefer an uplifting and inspiring high. I have enough trouble getting motivated as it is!
I was considering leaving them out longer anway to see if the buds can swell any bigger. I have a 40x jewelers loupe and I have quite a hard time trying to see the difference between cloudy and clear trichomes :/ The leaves on the plant still are really green so I might just wait until it uses up all the energy left in the leaves before I harvest, what do you think? Haha I can totally relate to you on that.
I hear ya' on the cloudy/clear trichome thing. I'm near sighted, and still bought a microscope so I could see shit better! The "green leaf fade" doesn't happen with all plants. I've had plants fade 4 weeks (of 10) into flowering. I've had plants stay green all the way to harvest. It's all genetic. IME, once you've decided that you're ready to harvest, you're still safe to grow for two+ more weeks. It's hard to "over-do" cannabis. If anything, I think most new growers harvest WAAAY earlier than they should. How about some updated pic's? Whole plant and close ups.
Thanks for the feedback man, really appreciate it. Yeah I understand what you mean about the 'over doing' of cannabis. I think I will harvest the one that is more mature in the next couple of days and leave the other for a good 1 - 2 (maybe even 3) weeks, to see how it develops and if it gets any bigger and/or more potent. Here is some close up pictures of the buds on the more developed one: View attachment 1253219 View attachment 1253220 I was also thinking about keeping it in the dark for 24/48 hours before I harvest like I have seen some people suggest. Do you think this a good idea and will actually benefit in any way? There are some more updated pictures in the OP, if you haven't seen Thanks for your time man.
Tobz', you're very welcome. I've learned soooo much from the good people floating around the GC forums (organics especially) in the year+ since I've been lurking about. I try to give back when I'm able. I think your staggered harvest idea is a good one. You'll learn the visual cues (and corresponding differences in the herb) that will let you know when to harvest in the future based on the effect you want from your smoke. I've never done this myself. I just learned harvest to harvest. Really pay close attention to the visual details that we've already discussed. And don't forget to label your plants. You need to be able to tell the difference between the two once they're cured and dry. I let my girls sit in the dark 2-3 days before harvest. Can I honestly say that there's any benefit to it? I don't know. I haven't run consecutive grows with the same strain since I started doing it. A lot of experienced growers do it. I figure it this way. It may not actually be beneficial, but it doesn't cost me a dime to do it, and sure isn't detrimental, so why the hell not?
learning a lot from this thread - thanks! Still have a lot to learn. Will have to google flushing! I think our plants are at about the same stage. I will read this a few times because I am not sure what stage my plants are at either. Good luck to you with your growing!
Yeah thanks, but it's so hard these days to find people that actually give a shit about your issues, especially on the internet, you know? Haha I will harvest one like I said and keep the other one and see what happens! I have already smoked a bit off the plant which I quick dried and it gave me quite a high then (2 weeks ago). Haha yeah why the hell not. I have heard people suggesting that when the plants are put into near darkness for a few days they start to produce more trichomes as a self defence mechanism for being in the dark, possibly increasing the amount of trichomes present on the buds... Whether this is actually true is another question!